Wednesday August 8, 2007 8:29 pm

Stranglehold Demo Hits Xbox Live

Xbox 360 owners looking for a little John Woo-style running and gunning action should head to the Xbox Live Marketplace at their earliest convenience. You probably know what it’s all about by now, but if not, here you go: Take one part Hard Boiled, mix with two parts Max Payne, and you’ve got Stranglehold. Throw in Chow Yun-Fat’s voice and likeness, and you’ve got THE game for Woo fans. Try before you buy today; the full game is slated to hit the Xbox 360, as well as the PS3, next month.

If you’ve played Max Payne, then you pretty much know what to expect from Stranglehold. Blast some bad guys while diving through the air, activate “Tequila Time” to go into a slow motion mode to deal out even more damage…you know the drill. The biggest difference is that this time, everything is destructible, and I do mean everything…neon signs, stone pillars, fresh produce, you name it. See a gunman poised to take you out on the balcony above? No problem…just take out the balcony itself and cackle with glee as the would-be assassin slams into the ground at your feet. This insanely high level of destructibility makes the game a blast to play.

The demo itself is surprisingly lengthy, consisting of an entire level of the game. It’s refreshing to see developers give gamers a sizable chunk of the game to try out, as opposed to doling out two measly battles and some Quick Time Events (I’m looking at you, Heavenly Sword). When you beat the demo, you unlock harder difficulty levels and new abilities to boot. Bravo, Midway.

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Forum Discussion

Yeah not bad, bit like dead to rights on steroides.
lots of diving and shooting, very much like a woo film.
The moment isnt as smooth as I would of liked.
love the way almost anything can be destroyed.

Comments:

Latest word from Midway is that the PS3 version is on track, but who really knows what that means. Given the third-party ports on the system and the UE troubles you mentioned, I would recommend sticking with the 360 version.

Of course, I don’t even know when I would get to play this, with Bioshock, Halo 3, Heavenly Sword all coming soon.